championing filmmakers Through design
YOUR CREATIVE VISION ACTUALIZED
Sarah Cogan collaborates with filmmakers to craft visually cohesive worlds through costume and production design, bringing story, character, tone, and emotion to life on screen.
Sarah’s Approach
For Sarah, design isn’t just about the aesthetics of costumes or production design but about supporting what the filmmaker wants to say. How we think about a film’s design is just as, if not more, important to Sarah than the aesthetic design choices themselves.
Before making any visual choices, Sarah ensures she’s clear on the director’s vision so she can amplify it through her designs.
Sarah researches both visual design elements, such as what people wore during a given period, and the thinking, perspectives, and societal pressures behind the aesthetics.
Psychology Driven Design
Sarah grounds her designs in psychology—the behavioral and cognitive psychology of people and the visual psychology of design.
Sarah uses her understanding of these subjects to inform character arcs through costumes and sets, build worlds that reflect characters’ psychological states, and create unique visuals that support a filmmaker’s creative intent.
one creative vision
From the start of any project, Sarah works to create what she calls cinematic cohesion, where every element within the frame works seamlessly together to tell one unified story, regardless of her position.
Sarah makes cross-departmental collaboration the nexus of her work to ensure the filmmaker’s vision is fully realized. Sarah shares research, design boards, renderings, fitting photos, and resources with her fellow department heads throughout the production process so ideas can ping-pong back and forth to find the best designs for a film.
Tell Me about Your Film
Shoot me a message and let’s see how I can support your creative vision.